Police arrested sixteen Native Americans and other protesters in North Dakota on Thursday. It was the latest clash between police and demonstrators trying to stop construction of a disputed oil pipeline.
According to the Morton County Sheriff’s Department, the arrests occurred as police redeployed to clear a camp on private property. Authorities said the property sits in the path of the proposed $3.8 billion Dakota Access Pipeline.
Protesters had occupied the area since Monday. Native Americans say they were the land’s lawful owners under an 1851 treaty with the U.S. government.
A footage posted on social media showed two armored vehicles and several armed police deliberately approaching one group of protesters during the skirmish. Some protesters claim that police tried to chase them out of the camp using beanbag guns.
“This is not about the pipeline. It is not about those who wish to legally protest. This is about the rule of law,” Morton County Sheriff Kyle Kirchmeier said in a statement.
North Dakota Governor Jack Dalrymple said that private property is not the place to conduct a peaceful protest. He said that police were successful in clearing the camp.
A consortium of companies headed by Energy Transfer Partners LP builds the 1,172-mile (1,885-km) pipeline. It promises to be the fastest and most direct route to carry Bakken shale oil from North Dakota to U.S. Gulf Coast refineries.
It would also be more cost-effective and safer than moving the oil by rail or road, supporters say.
However, the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and environmental activists say that the pipeline endangers the sacred tribal sites and the water supply. Authorities already arrested several in their months-long protest.
No reaction from Hillary Clinton
On Thursday, members of the Native American tribe called for Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton to dispute the pipeline. So far, she has not assumed a public stance on the matter.
In September, the U.S. government ceased construction on part of the line. The area involved includes property under Lake Oahe. The land is a culturally significant reservoir found on the Missouri River in southern North Dakota where the line was expected to cross.
Environmental activists protested against the Keystone XL line that the Obama administration disallowed, as opposition to the pipeline construction has risen in recent years.
The post 16 Arrested in Clear-Out Operation On North Dakota Pipeline Protesters’ Camp appeared first on Newsline.
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